Automobile antennas



Dec'. 20, 1955 J. GRAsHow 2,727,766

AUTOMOBILE ANTENNAS Filed 0G11. 25, 1950 f4 INVENTOR. 13%)?. MV'

United States Patent O AUTOMBILE ANTENN AS Joseph Grashow, Brooklyn, N. Y., assigner to The Quick- Mount Manufacturing Co., Inc., Brooklyn, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application October 25, 1950, Serial No. 191,998

3 Claims. (Cl. 287-20) This invention relates to radio antennas for vehicles, and more particularly to an antenna structure which may be installed from the outside of an automobile in a suitable mounting hole.

A feature of the invention is the provision of an antenna supporting arrangement of such simplified construction that it may be installed by a novice in a very short time.

Another feature of the invention is the provision of a supporting arrangement for an antenna which permits the antenna when telescoped to be concealed largely by the body of a vehicle.

The invention contemplates a supporting arrangement for an antenna comprising a sleeve in which one end of the antenna is fastened, and a clamping member cooperating with the sleeve for engaging the under surface of the automobile body. The clamping member is a bar arrangement formed with a closed slot which is shaped to fit rather closely a complementary portion on the upper part of the sleeve, the parts being shaped for limited relative rocking movement. The entire sleeve and a portion of the antenna are lowered through a mounting hole on installation of the device. The slot in the clamping member is passed over the upper end of the antenna, and the clamping member is then tilted on the antenna and inserted through the mounting hole where it is free to drop onto the top of the sleeve. A little manipulation with a tool such as a small screwdriver will fit the slot in the clamping member in a predetermined position on the sleeve, crossways of the mounting hole, Where it is free to rock. The sleeve is then withdrawn through the mounting hole until the clamping member engages the under surface of the automobile body adjacent opposite sides of the mounting hole. An external spacer ring having an under surface curved to conform to the curvature of the automobile body rests on a gasket about the mounting hole and a nut threaded upon the upper portion of the sleeve when tightened clamps the automobile body securely between the spacer ring and the lower clamping member. Prior to finally tightening the nut, the antenna sleeve and lower clamping member may be turned relatively to the automobile body as a unit from above, as well as the spacer ring, to adjust the angular position of the antenna with respect to the automobile body. Due to the arrangement which permits some relative rocking movement of the lower clamping member and sleeve, the angular position of the antenna may be determined by the curved under surface of the spacer ring which may be moved around the axis of the sleeve until the antenna is in the desired angular position.

The invention will now be described with the aid of the accompanying drawings, of which- Fig. 1 is an exploded view of one embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 shows a side view of a modification of the invention, partly in section;

Fig. 3 is a plan view showing the clamping member of Fig. 2 with a section of the mounting sleeve;

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Fig. 4 is a vertical sectional showing of the antenna support with a second type of clamping member;

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the clamping member of Fig. 4 as it appears positioned on the supporting sleeve;

Fig. 6 shows in elevation a generally straight clamping member with rocks on a curved surface aligned with fiattened side portions of the supporting sleeve; and

Fig. 7 shows details of assembled antenna parts in vertical section with the clamping member of Fig. 4.

Referring to Figs. 1-3 of the drawing, a portion of the outer tube 10 of the usual telescoping whip type automobile antenna is shown with its base portion mounted in a flanged insulating tube 11, preferably of laminated bakelite or the like which is snugly or even press-fitted into the bore of an antenna-supporting sleeve 12, preferably formed of a suitable metal. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the upper part of sleeve 12 has at surfaces 13 formed on opposite sides which terminate in shoulders 14 shown in Figs. 2 and 3. These shoulders support, or rather engage, the convex mid-section of a clamping member 15 formed, in one embodiment of the invention, from a generally oblong, slightly bent bar of quite heavy metal having a longitudinal flat-sided, generally elliptical opening in the central portion thereof of such dimensions that the flat sides of the opening are just large enough to slip over the flat parts 13 of sleeve 12 while the length of the opening is sucient to let the clamping member rock one way or the other on shoulders 14 t0 permit the clamping member to adjust itself with respect to sleeve 12 in accordance with the curvature of the automobile body when a withdrawing force is applied to the sleeve by means to be described.

Referring to Figs. 2 and 4, a gasket 20 having an opening therein through which the antenna passes is positioned about the antenna opening 21 in the car body 16. A spacer ring 22 of metal, Bakelite, or other suitable material, preferably formed externally with an ornamental, symmetrically curved surface, has a central bore through which the antenna passes, and an under surface which rests on gasket 20, the under surface being shaped to correspond to the curvature of a predetermined part of the automobile body, and so formed with respect to its central bore that the axis of the latter may be positioned vertically or at some desired angle with respect thereto when the spacer is properly positioned over opening 21.

Sleeve 12 is formed with a threaded portion near its upper end which holds a nut 24 having a grommet of soft rubber 25 or other suitable material which fits snugly about the lowermost sleeve 10 of the antenna to insulate the same, and also exclude moisture. Nut 24 engages spacer ring 22.

Referring to Fig. 7, the insulating tube 11 preferably extends downward for the greater part of the length of sleeve 12, terminating just short of the end of the tube to leave a space for the insertion of a coaxial cable connector to be described. With this arrangement, moisture and condensation are eliminated. The outer sleeve 10 ofthe antenna also extends downward into the bore of insulating tube 11 to substantially the end thereof. A stop member 26, comprising a relatively shortpiece of metal rod, such as brass, is inserted in the lower end of outer antenna sleeve 10 and limits the downward travel of the inner members of the collapsible antenna. The various parts just referred to may be secured to each other by any suitable means, such as press-fitting, or they may be all secured to the sleeve 12 by a single insulated pin 27 which may be of insulating material, or if of metal, the pin may be insulated by a tube 28 of laminated Bakelite or the like. The antenna and sleeve assembly just described is substantially the same as that disclosed in applicants patent application, Serial No. 49,697, filed September 17, 1948, now Patent 2,536,053, issued January'2, 1951.

A hole 3 is bored in the under end of stop member 26 to receive a connecting pin 4 for the central conductor of a coaxial cable 5 which connects the antenna to-a radio apparatus not shown. Sleeve 6 is the terminal for the outer conductor of the coaxial cable and is press-fitted or otherwise secured in the lower part of the bore of sleeve 12 which provides a ground connection for the radio apparatus.

The mounting arrangement of the present invention, about to be described, is entirely external of the mounting tube 12 and, therefore, does not interfere with the sliding of the antenna elements in and out of the sleeve. The structure of the invention is, therefore, readily adaptable for the construction of so-called concealed or semiconcealed antennas Where only say from four to six inches of antenna projects above the automobile body when the antenna is collapsed. Heretofore, the means for mounting and providing external connections for such antennas have been quite complicated.

Sleeve 12 and the elements enclosed therein may be made of any suitable length, and if an antenna of the concealed type is desired, the tube and associated parts are made of such length as to substantially enclose the greater part of the outer sleeve of the antenna. The number of collapsible sections of the antenna may be such as to compensate for the sleeve 10 which remains fixed in its mounting.

The antenna, mounting sleeve 12, and the coaxial cable are designed to be factory-assembled into a single unit. The clamping member 15, gasket 20, and spacer ring 22 are separate elements to be assembled on installation.

On installing the device, assuming a suitable mounting hole has been drilled, the free end of the coaxial cable is fed downward through the mounting hole, together with the entire sleeve and a part of the antenna, the antenna being held from above the automobile body. The end of the antenna is then passed through the opening in clamping member 15, the latter being disposed with its convex surface downward.

The diameter of mounting hole 21 is only slightly larger than that of sleeve 12. For example, in actual practice, a mounting hole of three-quarters of an inch is provided for a sleeve having a diameter of five-eighths of an inch. The width of the clamping member 15 is somewhat less than that of the mounting hole, and the length of the elliptical hole therein is kept as small as possible so as not to weaken the clamping member for if the hole is unduly long the sides thereof will tend to spread when the device is clamped in position. The diameter of the antenna is considerably less than that of sleeve 12, and this permits the clamping member to be manipulated thereon and passed through the mounting hole 21 and then, while the upper end of the sleeve 12 is still below the mounting hole, a small screwdriver or the like may be used to position the slot in the clamping member over the top of sleeve 12 so that it rests on shoulders 14 formed thereon. The structure then may be drawn upward through the mounting hole until the upper part of sleeve 12 projects above the surface of the automobile body and the upper end surfaces of the clamping member 15 engages the under surface of the automobile body.

The gasket, if not already positioned about mounting hole 21, may be passed over the end of the antenna followed by spacer ring 22 and nut 24, the latter being screwed on the threaded end of sleeve 12 to initially secure the structure. The sleeve 12 and clamping member 15 may be rotated from above as a unit to suitably position the clamping member on the curved body since the shapes of these parts prevent relative rotation thereof. Furthermore, the closed slot in the clamping member prevents the latter, once installed, from falling olf the sleeve, either due to the slot spreading under pressure, or during installation adjustment. As already explained, the spacer ring 22 may be turned about until the sleeve 12 and the antenna are in the desired angular position which is usually vertical, and then the parts may be finally fastened by tightening nut 24. Assuming sleeve is on the order of five-eighths of an inch in diameter, as mentioned above, and has a thread of a pitch of say twenty turns to an inch formed near the upper end thereof, then nut 24 will be effective to exert a pressure on the automobile body through the clamping elements described comparable to that of a good sized vice which is more than necessary to hold the antenna in position when once installed.

Other modifications of the invention are shown in Figs. 4 to 7. ln these figures, a ring 30 is provided in register with shoulders 14 to provide wider shoulders for engaging clamping member 15. The ring arrangement may be formed integrally with sleeve 12, or attached thereto by soldering, threading, or set screws 31, either singly or in combination, or by any other suitable means.

A modification of the under clamping member corresponding to the member 15 already described is shown in Figs. 4, 5, and 7. The latter clamping member 32 operates and is installed in the same manner as clamping member 15. Clamping member 32 is formed of somewhat thinner metal than member 15 because side anges stiften the structure against distortion in the mid-section which otherwise would be weakened at this point of greatest stress by the opening 33 through which the upper part of sleeve 12 extends.

The member 32 comprises a generally fiat oblong plate 34 of stiff metal provided with a fiat-sided, generally elliptical opening 33 whose flat sides just fit over the tlat surfaces 13 formed on sleeve 12. Opposite edge portions are bent downward and formed into parallel rocker-like flaps 35, the curved edges of which rock on shoulders 14 or ring 30 or both, depending upon the proportions of the parts. Preferably the iiaps 35 are so formed as to fit closely to the flattened side portions 13 of sleeve 12.

Fig. 6 shows an arrangement where the clamping member is flat and cooperates with curved shoulders 41, corresponding to shoulders 14 in Fig. 1. This arrangement which also provides for rocking action between clamping member 40 and the curved shoulders 41 formed by rounding off the shoulders projecting outward from the flattened parts 13 of the sleeve 12 is generally the reverse of the construction shown in Fig. 1, and operates and is installed in the same way.

What is claimed is:

l. Apparatus for securing a pre-assembled antenna structure to a mounting hole in an automobile body and being operable entirely from the exterior access surface of said body comprising a longitudinal sleeve having opposite flat sides and a bearing shoulder jutting transversely from said flat sides, said antenna extending from the upper end of said sleeve, an elongated clamping member having an elongated central opening closely fitting said fiat sides to restrain said member against rotation about the longitudinal axis of said sleeve, said clamping member having a convex under surface engaging said shoul-ders for supporting said member crosswise said sleeve with relative rocking movement, said member being tiltable in substantial alignment with said axis upon insertion through said mounting hole of that portion of said sleeve carrying said member, said clamping member having outwardly projecting ends terminating with upper surfaces designed to bear against the under surface of said automobile body immediately adjacent said mounting hole upon said member being oriented crosswise relative to said sleeve, and clamping means engaging said sleeve for effecting a clamping force down upon the top surface of said automobile body thereby pressing said member against said under surface to secure said antenna structure firmly to said body.

2. Apparatus for securing a pre-assembled antenna structure to a mounting hole in an automobile body and being operable entirely from the exterior access surface of said body comprising, a longitudinal sleeve having opposite at sides and a bearing surface dening a shoulder jutting transversely from said flat sides, said antenna extending from the upper end of said sleeve, an elongated clamping member having an elongated central opening closely fitting said ilat sides to restrain said member against rotation about the longitudinal axis of said sleeve, said member having a bearing under surface in register with said shoulder bearing surfaces for supporting said member crosswise said sleeve, at least one of said bearing surfaces being convex and serving as a fulcrum for supporting said member with relative rocking movement, said member being tiltable in substantial alignment with said axis upon insertion through said hole of that portion of said sleeve carrying said member, said clamping member having outwardly projecting ends terminating with upper surfaces designed to register against the under surface of said automobile immediately adjacent said mounting hole upon said member being oriented crosswise relative to said sleeve, and clamping means engag- References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,261,130 Jasper Apr. 2, 1918 1,291,303 Warner Jan. 14, 1919 1,565,253 Butters et al Dec. 15, 1925 2,454,897 Trowbridge Nov. 30, 1948 2,468,391 Cejka Apr. 26, 1949 2,509,563 Grashow May 30, 1950 2,524,534 Morris Oct. 3, 1950 2,536,053 Grashow Jan. 2, 1951 

